Rehab at Home

Being ready to leave hospital doesn't always mean you're ready to manage on your own. Rehab at Home is there for that in between bit. If it suits your recovery, you can do your rehabilitation at home, with registered health professionals like nurses and physios coming to you.*

Call our Customer Health Support Team to check your eligibility.

Call 1300 733 338arrow-right-long

What is Rehab at Home?

If you've lost some strength or movement after a stay in hospital, your doctor might recommend rehab to help you get it back. It's really common after things like a hip or knee joint replacement, heart surgery, a fracture, a stroke, or a long stretch in hospital.

There's more than one way to do rehab, and the right one depends on you and your recovery. Your doctor or care team will chat with you about it. For some people, that means doing rehabilitation at home.

If it's clinically right for you, you can do your rehabilitation at home, with nurses, physios and other registered health professionals coming to see you. Your doctor or hospital care team will set it up during your stay if they think it's a good fit. Admission is subject to other eligibility requirements, and you'll need residential hospital cover that includes rehabilitation as an Included or Restricted service, with the 2-month waiting period served.*

Who can get Rehab at Home?

  • You'll need residential hospital cover that includes rehabilitation as an Included or Restricted service, and to have served the 2-month waiting period for rehabilitation.
  • Your treating doctor will decide if Rehab at Home is right for you while you're in hospital, and admission into the program is also subject to other eligibility requirements.*
  • Depending on the hospital where you receive treatment, you may need a referral from your doctor or a member of the hospital care team to enter the Rehab at Home program.
  • It's not the only way to do rehab. Depending on what you need, rehab in hospital (inpatient), rehab at a clinic (outpatient), or seeing a local physio or occupational therapist might suit you better. Your doctor or care team will help you work it out.

How does Rehab at Home work?

1

It starts in hospital

While you're in hospital, your doctor or someone from your care team (like a discharge planner or physio) will talk to you about your rehab options, including whether Rehab at Home could work for you. If it's clinically right for you, they'll help arrange for your admission into an eligible Rehab at Home program. Depending on your hospital, they may need to send a referral first.

2

You get a plan made for you

Your care team puts together a rehab plan based on what you need to recover, then organises your care around it, like nursing and physio visits at home. How many visits you get, and how often, depends on your plan. Some days you'll feel like you're flying. Other days, getting to the letterbox is a big effort. Both are normal, and your care team will be keeping an eye on how you're going.

3

You’re not doing it on your own

Your Rehab at Home care team will keep in touch to confirm appointments, check how you're going and help sort out anything that comes up.

Are there any cost for Rehab at Home?

If you are eligible for Rehab at Home, there will be no out-of-pocket costs for services provided as part of Rehab at Home. If you need additional treatment, such as scans or follow-up with your health professional(s), there may be some related out-of-pocket expenses. Out of pocket expenses may apply to your hospital admission, depending on your level of cover, such as hospital excess or co-payments.

Other ways to do rehab

Depending on what you need, your doctor or a member of the hospital care team may recommend that one of these might suit you better:

  • Rehab in hospital (inpatient): If you need more support while you recover, you might stay in hospital or move to a rehab facility.
  • Rehab at a clinic (outpatient): You can stay at home and head into a hospital or clinic for scheduled rehab sessions.
  • Seeing a local physio or occupational therapist: If your recovery is going smoothly with no complications, you might just need to see a local physio, occupational therapist or other health professional.

To find out more, contact us.

Call 1300 733 338

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Things you should know

* Must hold residential hospital cover that includes Rehabilitation as an Included or Restricted service and have served the relevant waiting periods. Admission into a Rehab at Home program is determined by your treating doctor during your hospital admission and is also subject to other eligibility requirements. Depending on the hospital where you receive treatment, you may need a referral from your doctor or member of the hospital care team. Providers are not located in all areas and may change without notice. Out-of-pocket expenses may apply depending on your level of cover, such as hospital excess or co-payments.

While we hope you find this information helpful, please note that it is general in nature. It is not health advice and is not tailored to meet your individual health needs. You should always consult a trusted health professional before making decisions about your health care. While we have prepared the information carefully, we can’t guarantee that it is accurate, complete, or up to date. And while we may mention goods or services provided by others, we aren’t specifically endorsing them and can’t accept responsibility for them. For these reasons we are unable to accept responsibility for any loss that may be sustained from acting on this information (subject to applicable consumer guarantees).